Background and instructions on use of the McMaster Student Absence Form (MSAF) online system Faculty of Science August

10, 2011 The MSAF system is intended to provide a convenient way for students to report unexpected illnesses. It allows students who are ill with minor, but potentially contagious, ailments to stay home and not interact with the public until they are well. It relieves the pressure on Campus Health and other physicians, who usually cannot provide any medical relief for the cold or flu but are required to see the student before providing a medical note. And the electronic system allows Faculty offices to track trends of absences in individual courses or students in close to real time, and provide counseling and intervention when needed. The system not intended to allow students to manage their workload at university by choosing to delay a piece of academic work. If students are struggling or feeling overwhelmed by their courses, they are encouraged to speak to the instructor or TA, the Student Success Centre, or Academic Advisors in their Faculty/Program office. Usage of the MSAF system: For full details, please see "Requests for Relief for Missed Academic Term Work" in the General Academic Regulations in the Undergraduate Calendar. Note: the paper version of the 2011/12 calendar indicates that the MSAF can be used for two absences per term. At a recent Associate Deans' Group meeting, it was decided to restrict the usage to once per term. This will be reflected on the MSAF front page and the online version of the calendar. If students are absent for a minor medical reason, lasting fewer than 5 days, they may request relief for missed work from their instructors using the McMaster Student Absence Form. The MSAF cannot be used -- when the request for relief of missed work is for non-medical reasons (e.g. religious holidays, personal reasons, athletic events as a student athlete, etc), -- for a medical situation that lasts for more than 5 days, or -- for a second or subsequent time in a term, or -- for a major piece of work (worth 30% or more). Under these circumstances, students must bring appropriate supporting documentation to their Faculty office and speak with an advisor. If deemed appropriate, they may be granted permission to report their absence and request relief for missed work using the MSAF system. This privilege is not guaranteed, and if granted, some students may be required to modify or reduce their course load for the current or subsequent terms, depending on the circumstances of their absences. The MSAF system cannot be used for final examinations or their equivalent. Please see the information about deferring examinations in

the Undergraduate Calendar. If a course does not have a final examination, the instructor must make it very clear on the course outline that the MSAF cannot be used for the equivalent academic work. If you are absent from the university for a minor medical reason, lasting fewer than 5 days, you may report your absence, once per term, without documentation, using the McMaster Student Absence Form. Absences for a longer duration or for other reasons must be reported to your Faculty/Program office, with documentation, and relief from term work may not necessarily be granted. When using the MSAF, report your absence to [gundermn@mcmaster.ca]. You must then contact Marvin Gunderman immediately (normally within 2 working days) by email at [gundermn@mcmaster.ca] to learn what relief may be granted for the work you have missed, and relevant details such as revised deadlines, or time and location of a make-up exam. Please note that the MSAF may not be used for term work worth 30% or more, nor can it be used for the final examination. Responsibilities of the Instructor: Instructors should indicate, on the course outline: - the email address students should enter into the MSAF online system when requesting relief for missed academic work. This can be the address of the instructor, the course coordinator, a particular TA, etc. - who the students should contact to discuss what relief may be provided for the missed work. - how this person should be contacted (email, in person, etc). Additionally, instructors may indicate to students that relief may not be given if a student does not follow up within 2 days after the missed academic work. Optionally, instructors can indicate on the course outline how absences will be handled in the course. Common practices are to add the value of the missed work to the final exam (if the exam is cumulative), to hold a make-up midterm one week after the original midterm, to have make-up laboratory sessions at the end of term, or to have some of the components of the course be included in a flexible marking scheme (see below). The instructor has the ability to determine the most appropriate relief for their course. However, the relief should be fair, and not provide either an advantage or a disadvantage to the student who was absent. Instructors should reply to students promptly with information about what relief may be granted for the students' missed work. Normally this will be within 2 working days. Instructors cannot ask students to submit any other documentation or information about their absence.

If an instructor has designed his/her course with a flexible marking scheme, the MSAF system cannot be used for one of the pieces of work involved in this flexibility. For example, if a student's grade in a course is based on the best 5 of 6 assignments, the MSAF system cannot be used to exempt a student so that their mark would be based on only 4 assignments. Another version of the flexible marking scheme which works well is one in which selected pieces of term work (e.g. assignments, midterm exams) only count towards the student's mark if they improve it. Again, the MSAF cannot be used to excuse a student for something which may not contribute to their mark anyway. It is the prerogative of the instructor of the course to determine the appropriate relief for missed term work in his/her course. Responsibilities of the student: - Students must contact their instructor immediately (normally within 2 working days) after reporting their absence using the MSAF system, to discuss what relief may be granted, and any necessary details such as revised deadlines or time and location of make-up midterm. - Students are not required to provide details about why they were absent.